the-road travel may have to be moved to another location
and their contents transloaded into a larger container, two
trailers, or a truck that has the required number of wheels
for extra-heavy loads.
Allowable cargo weights for U.S., Canadian, and Mexican
roads are not uniform. In Mexico, for example, carriers sometimes have to unload northbound containers and trucks
before they cross the border, says Maltz, who advises shipping
loads that will be acceptable in both countries. “The weight
has to be legal before the cargo hits U.S. roads,” he says.
3. Get everyone on the same team. It’s not necessary for the freight forwarder in the exporting country and
the customs broker in the destination country to be from the
same company or the same forwarders’ network, but it can
sometimes help speed shipments along. That’s because both
forwarder and broker will be using the same information
system, and they generally will follow the same protocols for
communication and documentation, making for consistent
processes and a fast, efficient exchange of information.
Big companies that move a lot of merchandise across
borders on a daily basis often eliminate communication
worries by having their own customs brokers on staff.
4. Know all the players. Customs authorities aren’t
the sole decision makers on the border. Depending on the
product, other government agencies, such as the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of
Agriculture, may have a say in whether a shipment enters
the country. Furthermore, state agencies often station their
own inspectors at border crossings, and Canada and
Mexico have their own agencies that screen and inspect
shipments. Knowing in advance which agencies on both
sides of the border have authority over a product or commodity and providing them with the necessary documentation will reduce hold-ups.
The trucks themselves may be subject to inspections by
multiple agencies. The U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration (FMCSA) inspects trucks on both borders,
and state highway patrols often work alongside FMCSA
personnel. It’s wise, then, to verify in advance that the
motor carrier and the imported merchandise meet both
federal and state requirements.
5. Get certified. Shippers that participate in voluntary
government- and privately sponsored security programs
generally do benefit from faster clearance, fewer inspections, and privileges like authorization to pre-clear cargo
prior to arrival. It takes time, effort, and money to earn
those certifications, but it generally is well worth it.
“Investing a lot of effort in participating in certification
programs in Europe, Brazil, and the United States has real-
ly paid off,” said one attendee at a session on international
trade at the Council of Supply Chain Management
Professionals (CSCMP) 2011 Annual Global Conference.
To get the full benefit, encourage suppliers and other supply chain partners to get certified under U.S. and foreign
cargo security programs, such as CBP’s Customs-Trade
Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), Europe’s
Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) program, Canada’s
Partners in Protection (PIP), Sweden’s StairSec, and
Australia’s Frontline.
6. Be realistic about how long it will take. It’s
unrealistic to assume that any two shipments will take the
same amount of time to cross the border, even if they’re
identical. Factors like time of day, time of year, local traffic
conditions, and security alert levels can greatly affect the
time it takes to cross a border.
Border crossing times for northbound cargo from Mexico
can be highly variable. Research conducted earlier this year
by Prof. Miguel Gastón Cedillo-Campos of Mexico’s
National Council of Science and Technology found that on
average, it takes just over one hour for a truckload shipment
from Mexico to the United States to process documentation,
transfer to local drayage, and pass through Mexican customs—if, that is, the driver gets a green light when he press-es the “go or no go” button, and no inspection is required. A
red light, signaling that an inspection is required, will add 98
minutes on average. If after the primary inspection the driver gets another red light and undergoes a secondary inspection, tack on another 98 minutes.
Once the truck leaves Mexican customs, it takes another
207 minutes on average to cross into the United States,
undergo another primary cargo inspection, clear U.S. customs, undergo a truck safety check, and drop the trailer for
the linehaul carrier. Get tapped as a security risk and the
resulting secondary cargo inspection will add an average of
30. 5 hours to the transit time.
The lesson: Plan for the worst (i.e., secondary inspections), and time all downstream logistics and distribution
activities accordingly.
7. Explain yourself. Anything out of the ordinary—
unusual packaging, a new product or supplier, a sudden
change in routing—could raise suspicions and trigger
unnecessary inspections. Let customs authorities at the port
of entry know of the change in advance and offer to show
samples or demonstrate a new procedure. One attendee at
the CSCMP session said that when her company began
using a new type of high-security container seal, she sent a
sample of the seal to CBP officials at the U.S.-Mexico border along with a video showing how the seal was applied.
“They really liked it, and we had no problems,” she said. ;
